Car Tyres

Car tyre puncture repairs are monitored in the UK by British Standard BSAU159f:1990, or BS159 for short. This standard clearly sets out which punctures and sorts of damage can be repaired, and which cannot be fixed. This is to ensure that repaired tyres withstand high speeds and pressures without blowing-out and causing an accident or serious damage to the wheel or car.

Legal Requirements

BS159 dictates that in order for a tire to qualify for repair, a number of factors must be checked. The damage to the tyre must be in the tread, not the wall. The tyre must have a minimum tread depth of 1.6mm for cars and 1.0mm for motorcycles and trucks (if the tyre is worn or thin, it is safer to replace the tyre). There must be no damage to the tire from previous run-flat instances (if the tyre has gone flat and been used for a time before the flat was realized), and there should be no signs of aging or deterioration to the rubber. There should not be any bead or liner damage, and no signs of contamination to the tyre (objects or liquids in the rubber or tyre that have not caused the puncture but should not be present).

Furthermore, if there has been previous repairs made to the tyre, they must have complied by BS159. Some tire types can only be repaired once under the BS159 guidelines. Although this may seem like a prohibitive list, it has been put together to ensure the safety of you and your passengers.

Repairs

Generally most punctures can be repaired providing the tyre passes the BS159 inspection (or other test relevant to your locale), and are relatively cheap – prices are usually around £15 in the UK, $20 in the US. Your mechanic should use a vulcanised plug patch in the repair process, as this is the approved method that meets safety standards and should not fail at high speeds.

Emergency Repair Kits

If you experience your puncture whilst a long way from a petrol station or mechanic, it is advisable to change the tyre rather than driving on the damaged one, as driving on can cause serious damage to your wheel. You should always keep a spare ready for such a situation. There are also repair kits that can be purchased for absolute emergencies, which use a gel insertion nozzle and inflation process which reseals the puncture hole temporarily, allowing you to get to a mechanic or safe area for towing. Of course, replacing the tyre is preferable as it is much safer and less costly in the long term.